The scary, man-eating plant that grows and grows in Mushnik`s Skid Row Florist Shop in Little Shop of Horrors looks as if it comes from some geological age far, far away, possibly Jurassic. When it says "Feed me," everybody listens, especially Seymour, lackey of Mushnik, the shop`s owner. Seymour, played to nerdish, skittish perfection by Julio Ochoa, obtained the weird plant by fluke and is nourishing it to what will be more than robust health. Now at the University of Miami`s Ring Theatre, the musical and the plant have their roots in the 1960 movie by fast-buck producer Roger Corman.

The musical comedy "Little Shop of Horrors" just manages to turn shock into schlock in a somewhat restrained production at Stage Door Theatre. Maybe it's the large expanse of the Coral Springs space that siphons the gas out of this cult hit, which weaves early Motown and doo-wop around the threat of a pod from outer space. It wouldn't be the first time a great little show seemed undersize in a great big space. You certainly can't fault the cast, who ham it up with zest and sing to recorded backing with real vibrancy.

She's a maneater. Since Little Shop of Horrors opened in 1982, the leading "lady" with the deep, sexy voice and the enormous appetite has become one of show business' biggest divas. She's Audrey II, the rapacious potted plant that threatens to take over the world in off-Broadway's most famous musical. Based on a 1960 cult horror flick, Little Shop of Horrors has since spawned a movie musical of its own, equally cherished by fans. Meanwhile, the stage version remains a popular selection for revivals throughout the country.

Today's top story: Seymour Krelborn, a nerdy nobody desperate for fame, fortune, and love, feeds his monstrous, man-eating Venus fly trap some of his neighbors on Skid Row! Although Seymour might not actually be one of the new reality stars of 2010, his murderous pursuit of stardom, explored in David Posnack Hebrew Day School's entertaining production of "Little Shop of Horrors" shows the steps one ordinary man would take to achieve all his dreams. A spoof of 1950's sci-fi flicks, "Little Shop of Horrors", music and lyrics by the Disney duo Alan Menken and Howard Ashman, premiered off-Broadway in 1982 and soon became a cult classic.

Have you met Seymour`s cute carnivorous chrysanthemum? The plant`s name is Audrey II. But she doesn`t need water, just a chat once in a while -- and a pint of type O negative. You see, Audrey II is no ordinary house plant. She doesn`t just sit there; she likes people and would love to have you for dinner. So don`t just vegetate over the holidays; join Rick Moranis, Steve Martin, Ellen Greene and Vincent Gardenia for the riotous musical romp Little Shop of Horrors. You may never eat a Brussels sprout again.

Theatergoers who have experienced being shoehorned into New York`s cozy Orpheum Theatre understand why the monstrously offbeat Little Shop of Horrors garnered the Drama Critic`s Circle, Drama Desk and Outer Critics` Circle awards as best musical. The intimate setting of the Orpheum Theatre literally enveloped the audience in the action -- and brought Audrey II, that "mean green muther from outer space" into their laps with shrieks of delight. Having a green thumb, after all, isn`t what makes Audrey II fan her petals in ecstasy; it`s more an affection for a red thumb that makes her smack her blossomy "lips."

What happens when cosmic rays wash a greenhouse of house plants during a total eclipse of the sun? You get blood-thirsty hybrids in the cult classic Little Shop of Horrors. Paladin Players, the theater department of South Plantation High School, is presenting Howard Ashman`s funky black comedy Little Shop of Horrors for two weekends, beginning today.. "It`s a wonderful satire on science fiction movies with a little bit of the Faust legend," says Pat Cook, South Plantation High School drama teacher.

Finding a way out of Skid Row is no small feat, and neither is dealing with the guilt of being a murderer in order to keep suddenly acquired fame. In the musical Little Shop of Horrors, Seymour realizes how far a person will go for fortune, fame, and love. Based on the film by Roger Corman, Little Shop of Horrors is a musical that tells the story of a poor boy, named Seymour, who is taken under the wing of Mr. Mushnik, the owner of a florist shop down on Skid Row. When times are tough, and business is lousy for the neglected flower shop, Mr. Mushnik begins to hint toward closing the store for good.

by Sabina Braverman of Boca Raton High School and South Florida Sun-Sentinel, March 16, 2010

"Down on skid row," the sun doesn't shine and prospects for upward mobility are nonexistent. David Posnack Hebrew Day School's production of Little Shop of Horrors follows one man's unrelenting journey towards breaking free of poverty and the strange form in which his chance for salvation comes in. With music and lyrics by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman respectively, Little Shop of Horrors is derived from the darkly comedic 1960 film by Roger Corman....

LANTANA -- Beware: A man-eating plant by the name of Audrey II is taking over Santaluces High School, starting tonight. And there are four of her. The school`s performing arts department will be putting on the off-Broadway musical, A Little Shop of Horrors, today through Saturday, but the play never would have succeeded without a creation of the green, carnivorous plant, courtesy of a special-effects business in Orlando. Drama teacher Beverly Blanchette looked everywhere for an Audrey II -- so- named by the protagonist in the play for the woman he loves -- but she was all booked up, out of commission, or snowed under in a barn in Vermont.

Finding a way out of Skid Row is no small feat, and neither is dealing with the guilt of being a murderer in order to keep suddenly acquired fame. In the musical Little Shop of Horrors, Seymour realizes how far a person will go for fortune, fame, and love. Based on the film by Roger Corman, Little Shop of Horrors is a musical that tells the story of a poor boy, named Seymour, who is taken under the wing of Mr. Mushnik, the owner of a florist shop down on Skid Row. When times are tough, and business is lousy for the neglected flower shop, Mr. Mushnik begins to hint toward closing the store for good.

by Sabina Braverman of Boca Raton High School and South Florida Sun-Sentinel, March 16, 2010

"Down on skid row," the sun doesn't shine and prospects for upward mobility are nonexistent. David Posnack Hebrew Day School's production of Little Shop of Horrors follows one man's unrelenting journey towards breaking free of poverty and the strange form in which his chance for salvation comes in. With music and lyrics by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman respectively, Little Shop of Horrors is derived from the darkly comedic 1960 film by Roger Corman....

By Rebecca Wallace Deerfield Beach High and By Amanda Winston Cooper City High, May 6, 2005

A bloodthirsty blossom By Rebecca Wallace Deerfield Beach High Down on Skid Row, depression runs as deep as the holes in the pockets of its residents and misfortune is the rule, not the exception. Everyone's waiting and praying for their chance to escape the urban grit. In the Boyd Anderson production of Little Shop of Horrors, the audience is given a glimpse of this world and the strange things people do to find their way out. With music by Alan Menken and book and lyrics by Howard Ashman, Little Shop of Horrors follows the story of Seymour, just another "down-and-out" on Skid Row. His fortunes change one day when an encounter with a Chinese man and a sudden total eclipse of the sun bring him together with Audrey II, the plant that will earn him unforeseen fame and fortune.

Pssst! If there's anyone left in South Florida-land with the conviction that sleigh bells should not ring until after Thanksgiving, keep those thoughts to yourself or run the risk of being tarred and feathered as the Grinch. The Radio City Music Hall Christmas Spectacular has pulled in, and the holiday stampede is already under way. The Spectacular is a show boasting a 48-member cast, 18 of them the precision-dancing Rockettes. Add in assorted camels, sheep, a donkey, eye-filling costumes and sets and a hallowed tradition.

By Bryan Jones Piper High and By David Cohn Taravella High, May 30, 2003

Amid an array of slovenly bums and beggars, the journey begins. Welcome to Skid Row, where all dreams and aspirations come to die. It is here in the unlikeliest of places that a strange phenomenon is about to occur: This ramshackle environment is soon to be overwhelmed by a plant that is thirsty for blood. Thus begins Coconut Creek High School's presentation of Little Shop of Horrors. The dark comedy musical depicts the story of a nerdy flower shop employee who stumbles upon an exotic plant that brings notoriety and prosperity to the shop, along with some very interesting feeding habits.

The hippest creature feature of all, Little Shop of Horrors, lumbered onto the Miracle Theatre stage last week, its jive-talkin' botanical bully fattened to nearly-Godzilla proportions. The extra weight is uncomfortable and clumsy for now but the show will be on its feet and limbered up soon enough. In the meantime, she's still got the box office killer instincts she was born with. The late Howard Ashman's sublime mixture of satire, parody and cautionary drama and Alan Menken's '60's-flavored pop-rock musical score are the heart, soul and backbone of any revival's appeal.

The old song from The Fantasticks has it that you "plant a radish, get a radish." At the Burt Reynolds Jupiter Theatre this week, director- choreographer Edward Love planted an Audrey II; he got just that, and not much else. Audrey II is the man-eating plant of Little Shop of Horrors, the hit off- Broadway spoof that debunks both science-fiction movies and musical theater. There`s a whole cast of human misfits on the Reynolds stage to help out, but Audrey II goes it pretty much alone. When the creature bellows "FEED MEEE," one occasionally gets the desire to whip up a salad out of whoever`s sharing the scene.

The hippest creature feature of all, Little Shop of Horrors, lumbered onto the Miracle Theatre stage last week, its jive-talkin' botanical bully fattened to nearly-Godzilla proportions. The extra weight is uncomfortable and clumsy for now but the show will be on its feet and limbered up soon enough. In the meantime, she's still got the box office killer instincts she was born with. The late Howard Ashman's sublime mixture of satire, parody and cautionary drama and Alan Menken's '60's-flavored pop-rock musical score are the heart, soul and backbone of any revival's appeal.

She's a maneater. Since Little Shop of Horrors opened in 1982, the leading "lady" with the deep, sexy voice and the enormous appetite has become one of show business' biggest divas. She's Audrey II, the rapacious potted plant that threatens to take over the world in off-Broadway's most famous musical. Based on a 1960 cult horror flick, Little Shop of Horrors has since spawned a movie musical of its own, equally cherished by fans. Meanwhile, the stage version remains a popular selection for revivals throughout the country.

As movies have morphed into soulless special-effects spectaculars, the low-budget wizardry of the freaky stage musical Little Shop of Horrors remains as fun and scary as ever. In 1982, this song-and-dance black comedy enthralled off-Broadway audiences for 2,209 performances. All it took was a giant puppet, strings to pull and a garden-variety human being inside to pull them. Since its debut it has spread like a virus to regional theaters, where it keeps mutating on its own, you might say, this time at the Caldwell Theatre Company in Boca Raton.